4- Etosha part I

The great escape. Etosha. Several members of the group were going to leave Namibia, so we decided to take the opportunity to go up to the capital city to make a small getaway to Etosha National Park, one of the largest in the world with an area of 22,270 square kilometers, and a maximum distance from one end of the park to the other of 350 km. The translation means "The great white place", due to the large pan formed by carbonate in the northeast of the reserve.

This place is predominantly savannah, low forest and some pans (saline plains and depressions), with areas of scrub, and wide distribution of a very typical tree that was not present in the south: mopane tree (Colophospermum mopane), which houses a species of butterfly (Gonimbrasia belina), whose caterpillars (mopane worms) are used as a typical dish in southern Africa.

This reserve is bordered to the south by dolomite hills called Ondundozonananandana, which means "place where a shepherd went and did not return", probably due to the high density of predators in the area, and which probably gives the name in English of "Leopard hills".

We managed to rent a car in Windhoek from some very nice people. And the car was great, it was a 4x4 fully prepared to travel, with two tents on the roof that could be folded and unfolded. And all the necessary equipment in the "backy" (the back of the car) chairs, cutlery, tools for the car ... and most important of all in Namibia ... all the tools to make a braai.

While they were explaining us how to assemble and disassemble and how everything works, a beautiful scarlet-chested sunbird (Chalcomitra senegalensis) passed by in their garden. In places like these, there is life even in the city gardens, which are an oasis of greenery in this very dry period that is devastating the country.

Scarlet-chested sunbird (Chalcomitra senegalensis). Wikipedia picture.

And we set off, "refuelling" first at the M&B with a breakfast of champions, which would give us strength for the long journey we started later towards the north.

And in Africa, it's not all safari, but almost. If you look at the sides of the road, it is rare that you do not see some animal that calls your attention, from small birds, to hornbills, to vultures, or warthogs to giraffes. And so it was that on that 4-hour journey I was able to see a large number of animals that I had not seen and would not see again on the trip, such as the marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer) and a group of vultures among which were Cape vultures (Gyps coprotheres), white-backed vultures (Gyps africanus) and lappet-faced vultures (Torgos tracheliotos) flying over the road.

After a stop to buy biltong and a little more road, we arrive at our destination.

We stay the first 4 days in a campsite outside the reserve. The first night we were surprised by the visit of a dik-dik (Madoqua kirkii) around the campsite walking carefree, as well as a couple of warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) grazing the grass. A crimson-breasted shrike (Laniarius atrococcineus) also passed by, showing its colorfulness, and I was following it for a while trying to photograph it. The guineafowls were walking around, you could even see them on the way to the baths. We were excited about what was waiting for us the next day, what animals would we see, would they be close by, would I see any reptiles? were some of the doubts that haunted my head during the night.

From top left corner: African red-eyed bulbul (Pycnonotus nigricans), guineafowl (Numida meleagris), crimson-breasted shrike (Laniarius atrococcineus), dik-dik (Madoqua kirkii)

And at 5:30 in the morning we were awake preparing everything to get going, and be at the door at 7, waiting for them to open.

We entered and soon we saw the first animal, a jackal walking at a fast pace. We kept driving around, enjoying everything and adding animals to the list: springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis), zebras (Equus quagga), oryx (Oryx gazella), martial eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus), giraffes (Giraffa giraffa angolensis), kudus (Tragelaphus strepsiceros)…

From top left corner: Springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis), zebras (Equus quagga), oryx or gemsbok (Oryx gazella), martial eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus), giraffes (Giraffa giraffa angolensis), detail of a giraffe feeding on acacia flowers, male kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) and black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas).

In this type of safari and even more so with the conditions created by the drought, the best thing to do is to go to the water points and there wait for the animals to go and drink. And that's how we saw the black rhino (Diceros bicornis) in the distance, which was approaching the water point, but had to show who was in charge there, so the huge animal came running, kicking out all the animals that were drinking, claiming his right to drink alone from the pond, and if he felt like it, to bathe in it.

Then a pied crow (Corvus albus) landed on his back, giving the impression that he was the leader of the mastodontic animal.

From top left corner: giraffe drinking, jackals fighting for carrion at the edge of the pond, and the sequence of the black rhino driving the other animals out of the pond and the pied crow perched on its back.

TWe also saw a small group of lions lying in the shade in the distance, but too far away to see them as they deserve. And after that we went to one of the resting points; areas within the safari where you can get out of the car, eat and rest, since getting out of the vehicle is forbidden as a general rule in the park.

And what happens with this kind of busy places is that the animals are used to it, and they look for food from the humans like the ground squirrels and the birds, who came like crazy to drink some water.

From top left corner: Great sparrow (Passer motitensis) among sociable weavers (Philetairus socius), detail from both species, cape ground squirrel (Xerus inauris), violet-eared waxbill (Uraeginthus granatinus), frok-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis) drinking meanwhile the Cape glossy starling (Lamprotornis nitens) waits for its turn.

Then we found elephants (Loxodonta africana) in another water point. Huge, those four-legged titans so imposing. Also, in Etosha there are some of the largest elephants in the world, like a male, which certainly intimidated with that size, and you can see compared with other adult individuals. And the calves, those funny little guys with so much desire to play and a little bit of doubtful coordination, especially in the trunk.

And after a day full of animals, we had to return to our campsite. After dinner and the afternoon talk about the day, we went to sleep, thinking about what the next day would bring.

And the second day was just as exciting. That day we could really see the lions from closer up. A couple of lionesses resting in the shade of a tree just a few feet away. A magnificent animal indeed, and the one that got the most attention without a doubt. Something a little unfair for the rest of the fauna in the park, which has nothing to envy to "the king of the savannah".

We decided to go to one of the campsites inside the park; to Halali; to eat there.

And at this one, several species of horbills, starlings and tree squirrels were looking for food. It seemed as if each campsite had its own species used to humans.

From top left corner: Damara red-billed hornbill (Tockus damarensis), African grey hornbill (Lophoceros nasutus), northern red-billed hornbill (Tockus erythrorhynchus), Monteiro's hornbill (Tockus monteiri), bare-cheeked babbler (Turdoides gymnogenys), Smith's bush squirrel (Paraxerus cepapi) and southern white-crowned shrike (Eurocephalus anguitimens)

That afternoon we could see more elephants, giraffes, zebras... adding two new mammals that we didn't see the first day, the buffalo (Alcelaphus caama) and the impala (Aepyceros melampus petersi). And the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta), another documentary animal, an archetypal carnivore with its typical unmistakable sounds.

From top left corner: Elephants herd, adult male, calves, zebras, giraffes, blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) with its calf, black-faced impala (Aepyceros melampus petersi) and spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta). In the photo below you can see a pair of red hartebeest (Alcelaphus caama) in the foreground, and a group of zebras and wildebeests, as well as a spotted hyena.

We returned to the campsite, and after a braai, we went into the tents to rest for the next day. But something woke us up at night.

It was a porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis) eating from a pot of pasta that Adri had left outside the car, very confident. And a second one came in. Some very peculiar mischievous thieves, even more so when they get scared and run around with their spiked armour rattling. Of course, that scandalous escape was a peculiar and rather comical scene.